GAME REVIEW: Hectic brawler Anarchy Reigns' priced just right

Platinum Games, the developers of “Bayonetta,”“MadWorld” and “Vanquish,” have created another action-packed game called “Anarchy Reigns,” which has finally released in the U.S. after being available in Japan under another name, “Max Anarchy.”

Fans of the developer will feel right at home playing this over-the-top brawler set in a post-apocalyptic future where players take the role of “MadWorld” star and bounty hunter Jack Cayman and Leonhardt “Leo” Victorion, who works for the government as an agent. They are on the hunt for Maximillian Caxton, a former leader of the Bureau’s Strike One unit and current fugitive. As the game progresses, new, kooky characters will enter the fray, sometimes giving you the option to play as them. You’ll also want to play the campaign mode first to unlock these characters in multiplayer, where you’ll spend all your time after completing the silly story. Sixteen are playable, plus Bayonetta if you preordered the game.

Learning all the moves isn’t complicated at all. Most will find themselves mashing the weak and strong attack buttons. Doing this will fill up a bar where Killer Weapon attacks can be performed by holding the left trigger. These moves are great for bigger enemies like Mutants or clearing out numerous smaller ones like Killseekers. Pressing the X and A buttons at the same time will unleash a 360-degree attack to give you some room, but I rarely used it since it costs a little bit of health. There are also jump attacks for airborne enemies, objects can be picked up and tossed around, and successfully grabbing someone will result in brutal punishment. Rampage mode gives you super strength for a small amount of time and is great for beating up the big boys quicker. If two characters at once hit each other with Rampage, a hectic button-mashing mini-game begins. Defensive mechanics include dodging and blocking, which I mainly used during boss battles and against bigger enemies. Items like shields and grenades also can be used. Pretty much, all the basic brawling mechanics are available.

There are two types of missions: Free and Main. Free missions are little distractions that can be played numerous times to rack up points to unlock more missions. There’s little variety here, ranging from dispatching a certain amount of enemies in a time limit to pushing around giant balls into goals. There’s even one where you control a hovercraft and race around setting enemies on fire with a flamethrower. Main missions advance the story, and have you fighting off more of the same enemies with the occasional showdown with a character.

Unfortunately, single player doesn’t have a lot of depth to it, and really could have used larger overworlds and more missions. There’s a day-night cycle where the easier enemies run away and harder ones come out, but in the end there’s very little challenge, at least on normal difficulty. The army of smaller enemies that chase you down can be pummeled easily by mashing the regular attack buttons. I recommend hard mode for more experienced players.

Playing through the campaign is good practice for online play, where the real meat is at. A variety of game modes await, including one-on-one cage fights, Capture the Flag and Battle Royale, among others. Even though I lost a lot thanks to my amateur skills and gameplan, it was hectic fun. There will be times in 16-player matches where it can get a little too crazy and kills are stolen or your cheap-shotted from behind when attacking someone else. Action Trigger Events like a plane crashing nearby and black holes appearing out of nowhere make things even more crazy. After playing a few rounds, I didn’t mind going back to the slower pace of cage matches for a breather.

With a niche title like this, there’s always the fear the online community will move on a few months after release. Fortunately, bots are included in the package for this worst-case scenario.

What I also find appealing about “Anarchy Reigns” is the cost. Most console games retail for $59.99, and this game would have been hard to recommend for that price. This multiplayer brawler is only $29.99, priced just right if you’re looking for a not-so-serious game to blow off some steam.

3 stars out of 4A copy of the Xbox 360 version of “Anarchy Reigns” was supplied by Sega for this review. It is also available for the PS3.

Jeff Hoard writes about video games for Journal Register News. He can be reached at jeff.hoard@oakpress.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffHoard921. His blog is www.yay4videogames.blogspot.com.